"It feels trite to say that FIRST Robotics changed my life, but it did. I joined the team thanks to the persistent heckling of my physics teacher, Mr. Chidley, but I never would have stuck with it if I didn’t fall in love with it. I came into the team with little to no knowledge of robotics and engineering, but ready to learn and help, and I was given every opportunity to do so. The mentors were more interested in sharing their expertise with us students than in building something phenomenal for personal glory. That being said, we built something phenomenal together. The two days we spent at the Hartford Regional was a an amazing experience; I took part in the collaboration of students and mentors alike, honed skills of on-the-spot problem solving, and learned a significant amount about robotics and technology as a whole. Although the competition was what the team worked towards the entire season, I gained more from the actual build season. I learned how to commit myself fully to a project and see it through to the end with our meetings five nights a week, January through April from 5 to 9 PM, often later if we got on a roll. I learned how to think critically and outside of the box, and my confidence in my ideas, my contributions and in myself grew exponentially through this experience. I have been able to apply these skills in many aspects of my life beyond high school as well. My experience with FIRST and the Fitch Robotics Team has introduced me to the way I want to spend my liberal arts education, trying and experiencing new things and learning through all of them. It has taught me that regardless of what my focus may be, there is a lot of value to be gained from learning about things outside of my course of study.

In my freshman year of college, my mother mailed me a newspaper clipping from the Mystic River Press with the headline “Robotics Team is More Than the Robot,” which still adorns the wall of my college apartment. I held onto this because of its absolute truth; I gained so much life experience and so many skills from my senior year on the team that a part of me was disappointed to graduate. I have since spoken about my experiences in job interviews and used my skills in every aspect of my life as it has forever changed the way I think. I will never forget the experiences I had with this team, and I hope to continue my involvement with FIRST in the future."

I joined the Fitch Robotics team back in late 2007 out of pure interest and hearing about it during the school's announcements. The 07-08 season was the team's second year participating in the FIRST Robotics competition. That year, the team comprised around 10 members that were mostly seniors, and most duties were largely handled by the student leader because there was not yet any teacher available that was able to fully dedicate their own time to the cause. At the end of the 2007 season, turbulent times struck for the team when the student leader and most of the active team members were graduating and had to leave. There was literally no one left with any first hand experience of FIRST to lead the team besides me, so that year I tried my best to preserve the team. I tried very hard to recruit members into the team and I printed out flyers to advertise team meetings. I filled out grants to try and get enough money to compete. I went around the school and asked teachers to help out. Luckily that year, we were awarded a NASA Grant that covered the registration cost of the Hartford Regional and our kit of parts. Also, luckily that year I was able to gain the support of a teacher who is still coaching the team today.

During my time as a student participating in the FIRST program, I have served as a programming team captain and a student leader. After I graduated from Fitch, I returned to mentor the team on a weekly schedule while I was attending college.

After I graduate from college, I fully intend to keep close to the Aluminum Falcons and continue to mentor the team. I've been through a lot with this team and I'm extremely happy and excited to see it growing every year, and I can only thank the fellow mentors on the team that helped the team advance and the teacher at Fitch who helped support, reconstruct, and lead the team. I've made a lot of life long friends due to my involvement with FIRST, and I learned a lot and gained a lot of experience. I am extremely grateful for all of this.